Unit Card:
Set - Rarity - Number
Contested Skies - Uncommon - 35/45
Historical Background:
On 5th August, 1940, the Inspektorat(In) 6 instructed the Wa Pruef 6 to develop a reconnoissance vehicle suitable for underdeveloped regions (Panzerspahwagen fur Colonialzwecke), a concept generally associated with the Afrika Theater but that would be equally useful on the Eastern Front. The vehicle was to use similar components to the Sd Kfz 231, but with an air cooled diesel engine, improved fording capacities, monoblock chassis and strongly armored (30mm). The chassis was ordered to Büssing Nag and the engine to Tatra; the "Achradwagen (ARK)" should weigth 20 Tons with a frontal armor of 30mm and side armor enough to resist 7,92 mm armor piercing rounds. It had to be able to ford 1,20m, have a crew of 4 men and mount a 2cm gun with anti aircraft capacity (KwK.38 mit Flakrohr) and a 7,92mm MG. The prototype should be ready by December, 1941.
A change on the armament is first mentioned on a report dated 1st July, 1942, specifying a 5cm Kw.K.39/1 and a MG 34 (without discarding the possibility of mounting the 2 cm Kw.K.38) in a narrow profile turret, common to the Luchs, Leopard and Achradwagen proyects.
The chassis was manufactured by Büssing Nag in Leipzig (Manufacturer's code ARK), the superstructure by Deutschen Edelstahlwerke in Krefeld and the turret by Daimler Benz AG (5cm) and F.Schibau (2cm) in Elbing.
The first trials with the prototype started around July, 1942. Due to problems with the noise of the engine, a second model was developed (Tatra 103), and a tropicalized version of it was not finished until the defeat of the German army in Afrika.
The first 5 vehicles with a turret and 5 cm gun were delivered in December, 1943. As there were problems with the supply of the casted shield of the gun (Topfblende), the 234/2 were delayed and the chassis were diverted to other variants. The production finished on September, 1944, with a total of 101 vehicles built of the s.Pz.Sp.Wg (5 cm 39/1 L/60) Sd.Kfz 234 version. Incidentally, it was not known as 234/2 until March, 1944 and never officially called "Puma".
- Source: www.panzernot.net
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